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Category Archives: Economy
GREG JERICHO. The Coalition boasts about economic management. Where’s the evidence? (The Guardian 16.4.2019)
This is the only government since Fraser’s that hasn’t presided over an improved standard of living.
IAN McAULEY. Surely Morrison isn’t seriously asking us to trust him
Morrison’s words are a plea to trust his government, but his tactics seem to be aimed at spreading mistrust, not only of Labor but also of democratic institutions more generally.
Posted in Economy, Politics
4 Comments
SAM BYFORD. Huawei chairman accuses American critics of hypocrisy over NSA hacks (The Verge 27.2.2019)
Huawei’s rotating chairman Guo Ping has gone on the offensive this week at Mobile World Congress, following continued pressure on US allies to drop the Chinese telecoms giant over national security fears.
SUSAN RYAN. Older women are budget losers.
The 2019 budget contains little to improve the circumstances of the poorest older women. Increases of 10,000 previously announced home care places are provided for. An extra 13,500 residential places were provided. A new $8.4 million is allocated to mandatory … Continue reading
Posted in Economy
2 Comments
GEOFF HARCOURT. Sluggish Wages Growth
Recent comments on sluggish wages growth in Australia trace their origins back to the Accord introduced in the early 1980s. It is also argued that the Accord was a precursor to the introduction of the neo-liberal era in Australia. I … Continue reading
Posted in Economy
2 Comments
JOHN MENADUE The myth that the Liberals are better economic managers?
Scott Morrison in today’s announcement of the election date said once again that ‘Labor cannot manage money’ In an earlier post I argued that the economy is a means to an end. It is not an end in itself. The … Continue reading
Posted in Economy, Politics
8 Comments
JOHN MENADUE. The economy is a means to an end. It is not an end in itself.
Bill Clinton said ‘it’s the economy, stupid’. He was wrong, although in later years he spoke more wisely about ‘putting people first’.
Posted in Economy, Politics
2 Comments
JOSEPH STIGLITZ. GDP is not a good measure of wellbeing – it’s too materialistic (Project Syndicate)
Just under 10 years ago, the National Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress issued its report, Mismeasuring Our Lives: Why GDP Doesn’t Add Up. The title summed it up: GDP is not a good measure of … Continue reading
Posted in Economy
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MICHAEL KEATING. The Budget: Part 2
The Budget is the most comprehensive statement of a government’s priorities. It is the Budget that tells us specifically where the government intends to spend and how it intends to pay for that expenditure. In this article, I will seek … Continue reading
Posted in Economy
2 Comments
JIM STANDFORD. Wages: Oops, They Did It Again! (The Australia Institute)
You would think that after 5 consecutive years of wage forecasts that wildly overestimated actual experience, the government might have learned from its past errors – and published a wage forecast more in line with reality. But not this government.
Posted in Economy
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ABUL RIZVI. Dodgy Population Assumptions Crucial to Budget Figuring.
Ken Henry was forever explaining economic growth, and consequently the strength of the budget, is a function of productivity, participation and population. With the weak productivity growth of recent years likely to continue, the population and labour participation assumptions become … Continue reading
Posted in Economy
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MICHAEL KEATING. The Budget: Part 1
The Budget provides the opportunity for the Government and the Opposition to outline their respective economic strategies and their relative priorities. Interestingly, while there are significant differences between the two major political parties, there are also important similarities; probably … Continue reading
IAN McAULEY. A budget to entrench economic vulnerability
Even from a “what’s in it for me” viewpoint, the budget is a failure, because tax cuts would soon be wiped out by higher charges for education, health care and transport. More importantly it does not address structural weaknesses in … Continue reading
Posted in Economy, Politics
4 Comments
MICHAEL PASCOE. Frydenberg makes emergency direct deposits. (New Daily 3.4.2019)
The headlines might look pretty, but there’s little substance behind the government’s core budget spends.
Posted in Economy, Politics
3 Comments
DANIELLE WOOD. Intergenerational theft. (The Conversation).
The tens of thousands of young people who were protesting at the school climate strike two weeks ago know that they are being left a stinking great environmental mess to clean up. But I suspect that many are yet to … Continue reading
Posted in Economy
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JOHN KERIN. Wage compression and its wider implications, economic and political.
All macro-economic variables relate to one another. The economic growth rate, monetary and fiscal policy, budgetary policy, business profitability, investment, taxation (and the avoidance and evasion of tax), the wage rate, transfers and trade balance all interact and adapt to … Continue reading
SATURDAY’s GOOD READING AND LISTENING FOR THE WEEKEND
A regular collection of links to writings and broadcasts in other media
Posted in Economy, Uncategorized
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MARTIN WOLF. The Brexit delusion of taking back control (Financial Times 27.3.2019)
From Beijing, where I now am, the UK looks small. It also looks as if it has fallen into the hands of lunatics engaged in an astonishing act of national self-harm.
Posted in Economy, International Affairs
2 Comments
MICHAEL WEST, JEFFREY KNAPP. Conflicts of Interest”R”Us: KPMG pursues PwC back into insolvency (Michael West).
The Big Four, the relentless architects of global tax avoidance, have returned to the insolvency business, despite selling out of it 15 years ago because of overweening conflicts of interest. When it became known last year that the bosses of … Continue reading
Posted in Economy, Infrastructure
2 Comments
DANNY DAVIS. Super power: why the future of Australian capitalism is now in Greg Combet’s hands (The Conversation).
Right now Greg Combet is arguably the most powerful man in Australia. Earlier this month the former trade unionist and federal politician declared his intention to transform Australian business. His radical idea: to promote the concept of “long-term value”.
Posted in Economy, Environment and climate
2 Comments
TERRY MORAN. The next long wave of reform — where will the ideas come from? Part 2
I want to talk about what I am going to describe as a mission – Australia’s next long wave of reform. It is the third wave of reform which must bring us to a compact on the big ideas which … Continue reading
Posted in Economy, Politics
3 Comments
TERRY MORAN. The next long wave of reform — where will the ideas come from? Part 1
I want to talk about, what I’m going to describe as a mission – Australia’s next long wave of reform. It is this third wave of reform which must bring us to a compact on the big ideas which will … Continue reading
Posted in Economy, Politics
10 Comments
JOO-CHEON THAM. We’ve let wage exploitation become the default experience of migrant workers (The Conversation, 21.03.18)
Australia’s Fairwork Commission has so far this year examined more than a dozen cases of wage theft. Those cases involve hundreds of workers and millions of dollars in underpayments. And it’s just the tip of the iceberg.
SATURDAY’s GOOD READING AND LISTENING FOR THE WEEKEND
A regular collection of links to writings and broadcasts in other media
Posted in Economy, Uncategorized
Comments Off on SATURDAY’s GOOD READING AND LISTENING FOR THE WEEKEND
MICHAEL KEATING. Why is our economic growth rate less than half its potential, and what to do about it?
The poor performance of the Australian economy, as further revealed in last week’s release of the National Accounts, raises questions about the longer-term economic outlook and whether the conventional diagnosis of our major economic challenges is correct. Notwithstanding resistance from … Continue reading
Posted in Economy
3 Comments
PETER RYAN. CEDA urges Morrison Government to back Labor tax changes (ABC News).
An independent economic think tank is urging the Morrison Government to do the politically unthinkable ahead of an expected May election and back Labor’s plans to end unsustainable tax breaks.
SATURDAY’s GOOD READING AND LISTENING FOR THE WEEKEND
A regular collection of links to writings and broadcasts in other media
Posted in Economy, Uncategorized
1 Comment
JOHN MENADUE. Some Coalition legacies that a new government must confront
There are several major issues that dominate public life today and require resolution. Those issues are –the growing existential threat of climate change, the dire consequences following the Iraq invasion, tax cuts during the mining boom that result in continuing … Continue reading
ALAN AUSTIN. Coalition doubles all government debt since Federation in just under six years (Michael West).
The Coalition has just doubled all government debt accumulated since Federation. In under six years. Alan Austin reports.
Posted in Economy, Politics
2 Comments
JOHN MENADUE. As PM, Bill Shorten could help offer cheaper cars without any cost to the budget
The Australian Motor Industry Federation and the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries have successfully lobbied the Australian government to continue restrictions on the imports of second-hand vehicles. We are paying a large price for protecting an industry that no longer … Continue reading
Posted in Economy, Infrastructure
4 Comments